For many years, vandalism and theft of all types of vehicles has been a major problem for the owners of such vehicles. Theft of automobiles, for example, is a dilemma throughout the world. However, vandalism and theft of small aircraft that are kept at hundreds of small airports throughout the country is an especially acute and progressively more prevalent phenomenon. There are several reasons for the rise in aircraft theft over the years. Not the least of these reasons is the pronounced increase in drug trafficking wherein small airplanes are commonly stolen to transport drugs to and from the country, whereupon the plane is simply ditched or discarded. In addition, many small airports throughout the country are substantially unattended for long periods of time and particularly at night. This makes it relatively easy for an airplane thief to overcome the simple locks provided on airplane doors and steal the airplane and all its equipment. Even when small airports are attended, it is often difficult for the attendant to monitor the comings and goings of the aircraft to insure that only their owners or authorized pilots are using the planes. Thus, in some cases, small airplanes are stolen in broad daylight with the airport attendant being none the wiser. Since even the simplest small aircraft can cost several times the price of an expensive automobile, such theft leads to increased insurance rates and substantial losses for the airplane owners.
In addition to airplane theft, the theft of expensive radio and telemetry equipment aboard small airplanes has also become an acute problem. In these instances, the airplane itself may not be stolen but a thief will break into the cockpit and steal the radio and telemetry equipment, which can itself cost tens of thousands of dollars. Again, this type of equipment theft leads to increased insurance rates and losses.
In the past, there has been virtually no effective security systems for securing aircraft that are parked on the tarmacs of small airports throughout the country. While aircraft can be provided with their own individual security alarm systems similar to those installed in automobiles, these alarm systems can prove to be ineffective, particularly where a small airport is unattended and no one is present to hear an alarm. Accordingly, individual airplane security alarms have proven only marginally successful.
A number of electronic security systems have been developed to protect vehicles and buildings against vandalism. U.S. Pat. No. 3,703,714 of Andrews, for example, discloses a remote alarm system for securing a vehicle such as an automobile. When an unauthorized attempt at access is made to the vehicle, a signal is transmitted to a remote receiver, which generates an alarm signal alerting responsible individuals to the attempted access. U.S. Pat. No. 4,737,771 of Coash teaches a security system for buildings and commercial structures that features a jamming or interference detection methodology. The interference detection methodology functions to detect instances when an unauthorized intruder is jamming the receiver by transmitting prolonged artificial signals thereto. U.S. Pat. No. 5,049,867 of Stouffer discloses a vehicle security system designed to locate an automobile or other vehicle that has been reported stolen. In this system, when a vehicle is reported stolen, a central transmitting station transmits a coded signal that instructs a transceiver within the vehicle to disable the starting circuit of the vehicle and to sound an alarm. Thus, the thief is unable to operate the vehicle once it has been discovered to be missing. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,070,320 of Ramono and 5,103,221 of Memmola also disclose security systems wherein detectors in a vehicle or building transmit an intrusion code to a central receiver that processes the code.
While these patents and other prior art security systems function acceptably in their intended environments, none of them is suited to the unique demands of securing a large number of aircraft parked on the tarmac of an airport. For example, none of the devices of these patents or of the prior art provide for the constant monitoring of each aircraft to determine that it is still present at the airport. Furthermore, the prior art does not provide a means for tracking and locating a stolen aircraft that has been flown to another airport and landed for fuel or the like. Finally, there are no security systems in the prior art that permit or allow for the linking of a large number of airport sites and the individual aircraft parked at such sites into a regional or nationwide security network for the tracking and security of small aircraft nationwide.
Thus, there is a need for an aircraft security system and methodology that addresses the problems and shortcomings of the prior art and that is particularly tailored and suited for securing and monitoring aircraft parked at and traveling between small airports throughout the country. It is to the provision of such an aircraft security system and methodology that the present invention is primarily directed.